Richard Auldon Clark) 7:37 Chris Gekker, Trumpet; Katherine Murdock, Viola; Jason Gekker, Double Bass
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1 … and justice for all? (Richard Auldon Clark) 7:37 Chris Gekker, trumpet; Katherine Murdock, viola; Jason Gekker, double bass 2 Elegy for a Sultry Summer Afternoon (Lance Hulme) 5:29 Chris Gekker, trumpet; Rita Sloan, piano 3 Moon Marked (Carson Cooman) 6:25 Chris Gekker, trumpet; Suzanne Gekker, clarinet 4 Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Brahms (Eric Ewazen) 12:59 Chris Gekker, flugelhorn; Rita Sloan, piano Divertimento (Richard Auldon Clark) 10:11 5 I 2:24 6 II 5:44 7 III 2:03 Chris Gekker, trumpet; Katherine Murdock, viola; Mark Hill, oboe 8 Acquainted with the Night (Alistair Coleman) 5:52 Chris Gekker, trumpet; Rita Sloan, piano 9 Peace on Earth (Franklin Kiermyer) 4:28 Chris Gekker, trumpet; Suzanne Gekker, clarinet; Jason Gekker, double bass; Lianna Gekker, piano Total duration 53:27 brief notes by Chris Gekker Richard Auldon Clark’s …and justice for all? begins with a dramatic recitative for solo viola, answered by the measured tread of trumpet and double bass. This dialogue occurs several times. As the piece progresses the voices blend as they share an anguished plea. Elegy for a Sultry Summer Afternoon by Lance Hulme is a warmly expressive narrative for trumpet and piano. The piano intones a cyclical motif that provides a foundation for the trumpet’s lyricism. A contrasting section joins both instruments in a weaving dialogue. The evanescent coda is a model of hushed nuance. Carson Cooman created the term “moon marked” after reading accounts of astronauts who found, upon returning to earth after traveling in space, an altered perception of reality here on our home planet. His Moon Marked for clarinet and trumpet is an ever-shifting exploration of color and timbre, the two voices alternatively diverse and unified, seeming to perceive their surroundings with a new perspective. In 2010 I commissioned Eric Ewazen for his Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Brahms for flugelhorn and piano. I asked him to use the opening theme of Brahms’ Intermezzo op. 117 no. 1, a work that I grew up hearing my father play. Paul Gekker was a fine amateur pianist who loved Schubert, Schumann, and Brahms, as well as his Russian favorites. I am very grateful to Eric for composing this work, which is dedicated to the memory of my father, Paul Gekker. Divertimento for oboe, viola, and trumpet by Richard Auldon Clark was premiered at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Auditorium in 2015. Before this first performance I joked with Richard that our appearance on stage would prompt a reaction along the lines of “an oboist, violist, and trumpeter walk into a bar.” Richard’s work explores the common ground that the three instruments can share, while also allowing each its unique color and voice. I met Alistair Coleman during his junior year of high school in Montgomery County, Maryland. His Acquainted with the Night was composed the following summer, before his senior year, and later revised during his freshman year at the Juilliard School in New York City. This hauntingly beautiful work is inspired by the poem by Robert Frost and fades to gentle tapping of the piano keys. In 1985, during my years living in New York City, I received a call from a newly arrived musician from Montreal who wanted to meet and discuss some musical ideas and projects. Franklin Kiermyer is a drummer who has achieved a renowned and unique profile in modern jazz, but this description is inadequate – I can only speak for myself in saying how profound his influence has been on me as a musician and person. I consider him a teacher - that we became close friends is something for which I am deeply grateful. Peace on Earth appears on Franklin’s Solomon’s Daughter CD (1994), a critically acclaimed recording featuring Pharoah Sanders, recently reissued in 2019. I was grateful to play a small role on this CD, and well remember a quiet conversation with Pharoah - Lianna was just a few months old, and he spoke of the blessing of having children grow up in one’s home. I also remember long walks with Franklin through Greenwich Village, taking turns guiding Lianna in her baby stroller. Here we offer our own interpretation of Franklin’s work, which is based on a simple idea that has infinite potential for exploration, creativity, and, perhaps, hope – much like the concept “peace on earth.” Composer, conductor, violinist, and violist Richard Auldon Clark (b.1964) is Artistic Director and Conductor of the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra, Manhattan Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, and the Finger Lakes Chamber Music Festival. A strong proponent of American music, Mr. Clark has performed and/or recorded hundreds of world premiers, and his work has received extraordinary praise in the New York Times, Fanfare, American Record Guide, Washington Post, and dozens of others. Mr. Clark has recorded the music of David Amram, Henry Cowell, Seymour Barab, Lukas Foss, Alan Hovhaness, Otto Leuning, Osvaldo Lacerda, Dave Soldier, Alec Wilder, and many more. An active studio musician as well, Mr. Clark has performed and recorded for Broadway, television, commercial, and film music, including several films for Philip Glass. Mr. Clark’s compositions have been praised in the New York Times and broadcast on NPR stations around the country. With more than twenty chamber works to his credit, Mr. Clark has premiered six new compositions in the past three years at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, and in September 2016, his opera Happy Birthday, Wanda June with a Libretto by Kurt Vonnegut was premiered by Indianapolis Opera. A frequent collaborator, Mr. Clark works with dancers, choreographers, and visual artists in the creation of new works. Currently, Mr. Clark is Professor of Music at Butler University where conducts the Butler Symphony Orchestra and Butler Ballet. Alistair Coleman, composer (b.1998), is a recipient of the George Gershwin Scholarship at the Juilliard School. Recent works include a violin concerto for Soovin Kim, commissioned by the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival in celebration of their tenth anniversary season. Alistair’s cello concerto for Grammy-award-winning cellist Zuill Bailey was premiered in 2020 to culminate Alistair’s four-year residency with the National Philharmonic Orchestra at Strathmore Hall. His sonata for Joseph Alessi of the New York Philharmonic is currently touring the U.S., China, and Japan. Alistair’s string quartet “Moonshot” was premiered by the Abeo Quartet in collaboration with the Glenstone Museum and Smithsonian Institute. Alistair's music has been performed by ensembles including “The President's Own,” United States Marine Chamber Orchestra, Washington Master Chorale, Cathedral Choral Society, and musicians from the Baltimore and National Symphonies, Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect, and Minnesota Opera Orchestra. He is the protégé composer- in-residence at Chamber Music Northwest in 2021. Alistair’s music has been recognized by ASCAP, American Composers Forum, and NPR. His teachers include David Serkin Ludwig of the Curtis Institute. At Juilliard, he studies with Robert Beaser, takes academic coursework at Columbia University, and engages in mentorship with President Emeritus Joseph W. Polisi. For more information, visit www.alistaircoleman.com. Carson Cooman (b. 1982) is an American composer with a catalog of hundreds of works in many forms—from solo instrumental pieces to operas, and from orchestral works to hymn tunes. His music has been performed on all six inhabited continents in venues that range from the stage of Carnegie Hall to the basket of a hot air balloon. Cooman’s music appears on over forty recordings, including more than twenty-five complete CDs on numerous labels. As an active concert organist, Cooman specializes in the performance of contemporary music. Over 300 new compositions by more than 100 international composers have been written for him, and his organ performances can be heard on a number of CD releases and more than 2,000 recordings available online. For more information, visit www.carsoncooman.com. Eric Ewazen, Composer and Teacher (b.1954), has been a member of the Faculty of The Juilliard School since 1980. His music, particularly for brass and winds has become a staple of the repertoire, performed and recorded by soloists, chamber ensembles, wind ensembles and orchestras around the world. Some of the most distinguished performing artists of the 20th/21st centuries have embraced his music, frequently featuring the many works he has written on concerts and recordings. He received his Bachelor of Music Degree from the Eastman School of Music, and Master and Doctorate Degrees from the Juilliard School. His teachers have included Milton Babbitt, Samuel Adler, Warren Benson, Joseph Schwantner and Gunther Schuller. Eric has served as a lecturer for the New York Philharmonic’s Musical Encounters Series. Past faculty appointments include the Hebrew Arts School and the Lincoln Center Institute. Eric has held the post of Vice President of the League of Composers – International Society for Contemporary Music from 1982 to 1989, and has been featured as Composer in Residence for the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. Recently his Concerto for Violin and String Orchestra was featured by the Paul Taylor Dance Company during their Lincoln Center season. Composer Lance Hulme (b.1960) has a multi-faceted career as keyboardist, conductor, arranger and educator. His music has been performed throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia and has garnered both critical and audience acclaim. Recordings of his music include compact disc releases on the Albany, Bridge, LiveNotes, Ablaze and Métier labels. Hulme’s music has won many awards including Grand Prize, International Witold Lutoslawski Composition Competition, 1st Prize, ASCAP/Rudolf Nissim Prize, Grand Prize, International Trumpet Guild Composition Competition and awards from the Composición Musical Cuitat de Tarragona, Citta di Trieste Orchestra Competition and the Ladislav Kubik Composition Competition.